Chinese President Jiang Zemin held talks with visiting Uzbekistan President Islam Karimov at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on the afternoon of November 8.

The two presidents exchanged views on bilateral relations and international issues of common concern, and reached broad a consensus.

Jiang said China and Uzbekistan have conducted all-round cooperation since the two forged diplomatic ties eight years ago, and that China values the efforts made by Karimov in promoting Sino-Uzbek relations

Jiang noted that Uzbekistan is an important country in central Asia and it is important for China and Uzbekistan to maintain good friendship for promoting regional peace, development, and cooperation.

He said there is a solid basis for the two countries to advance bilateral ties, which he believes will witness even more vigorous progress in the next century.

Karimov expressed happiness over his third China visit, saying each of his visits in the past has helped promote bilateral ties.

He said that Uzbekistan and China enjoy a traditional friendship and the Uzbek people are quite encouraged to see the great changes that have taken place in China in many areas.

The two presidents agreed that the forces of religious extremism and national separatism have imposed serious threats to the stability of some countries and regions, and they must be sternly cracked down upon.

They agreed that the two countries will intensify cooperation to jointly suppress these forces.

Touching on Sino-Uzbek economic and trade ties, Jiang said they constitute an important part of bilateral relations, but that the current scale of Sino-Uzbek economic cooperation should be expanded.

Jiang expressed the hope that the two sides will work to tap the potential of bilateral cooperation and take effective measures to boost Sino-Uzbek economic and trade cooperation.

The mixed committee of Sino-Uzbek economic and trade cooperation should play a major role in advancing bilateral economic ties, Jiang noted, adding that the Chinese government encourages the country's enterprises to reinforce cooperation with their Uzbek counterparts to bring bilateral cooperation up to a new level.

Karimov agreed that this potential can and should be developed. He said that bilateral economic cooperation should be fostered with a strategic point of view. Uzbekistan is ready to strengthen its economic and trade cooperation with China in the coming century, he told Jiang.

The two presidents signed a joint statement and the two sides also signed a number of agreements following the talks.